RIGHTS OF

WOMEN IN
ISLAM
Junaid Raza
 Introduction
• Family, society and ultimately the whole of mankind is
treated by Islam on an ethical basis.
• Differentiation in gender is neither a credit nor a
drawback for men or women.
• Therefore, when we talk about status of woman in
Islam it should not lead us to think that Islam has no
specific guidelines, limitations, responsibilities or
obligations for men.
• What makes one valuable and respectable in the eyes of
Allah, the Creator of mankind and the universe, is
neither one's prosperity, position, intelligence, physical
strength nor beauty, but only one's God-consciousness
and awareness.
Historical perspectives

• Indian women
• Athenian women
• Roman women
• English women
 Indian women
Women in the Indian society were considered
degraded creatures who were to be looked
down upon.

The integrity of a woman lied according to the

presence of her male family members ie
father, husband, sons etc

Huge dowries were demanded

Practice of ‘satee’

 low socioeconomic status

 Athenian women

• Athenian women were always minors,

subject to some male - to their father, to
their brother, or to some of their male kin.

• Her consent in marriage was not generally

thought to be necessary and "she was
obliged to submit to the wishes of her
parents, and receive from them her husband
and her lord, even though he were stranger
to her."
 Roman women

• Roman women were minors in the society

• If married, she and her property passed into the

power of her husband . . . the wife was the purchased
property of her husband, and like a slave acquired
only for his benefit.
• A woman could not exercise any civil or public
office .
• She could not be a witness, surety, tutor, or guardian;
she could not adopt or be adopted, or make will or
contract.”
According to the English Common Law:

• ...all real property which a wife held at the time of a

marriage became a possession of her husband.

• He was entitled to the rent from the land and to any

profit which might be made.

• As to a wife's personal property, the husband's power

was complete. He had the right to spend it as he saw fit.
Only by the late nineteenth Century
did the situation start to improve. "By
a series of acts starting with the
Married women's Property Act in
1870, amended in 1882 and 1887,
married women achieved the right to
own property and to enter contracts on
a par with spinsters, widows, and
divorcees."
Misconceptions about Women in Islam:

• Muslim women are slaves to their husbands/ inferior to

them

• Women are forced by their husbands to cover

• Women are backward

• Women are oppressed in Islam

• Women are completely devoid of spiritual, social,

economic or political rights
Women in Islam
• In the midst of the darkness that surrounded the
world, the divine revelation echoed in the wide
desert of Arabia with a fresh, noble, and
universal message to humanity:

He (God) it is who did create you from a single

soul and therefrom did create his mate, that he
might dwell with her (in love)...(Qur'an 7:189)

And Allah has given you mates of your own

nature, and has given you from your mates,
children and grandchildren, and has made
provision of good things for you… (Qur'an
16:72)
• The spiritual aspect

• The economic aspect

• The social aspect

• The political and legal aspect

 The Spiritual Aspect
• Women have the same human spiritual nature as men
“"Every soul will be (held) in pledge for its deeds"
(Qur'an 74:38). It also states:
• ...So their Lord accepted their prayers, (saying): I
will not suffer to be lost the work of any of you
whether male or female. You proceed one from
another ...(Qur'an 3: 195).
• Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and
has faith, verily to him will We give a new life that is
good and pure, and We will bestow on such their
reward according to the their actions. (Qur'an16:97,
see also 4:124).
 Woman responsible for the fall of man?
Bible;
• "A woman should learn in quietness and full
submission. I don't permit a woman to teach or
to have authority over a man; she must be
silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve.
And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the
woman who was deceived and became a
sinner." 2:11-14
• "No wickedness comes anywhere near the
wickedness of a woman... Sin began with a
woman and thanks to her we all must die. .."
(Catholic Bible, 25:19,24)
Woman responsible for the fall of man?
Quran;
• The Quran does not blame woman for the
“fall of man,” nor does it view pregnancy
and childbirth as punishments for “eating
from the forbidden tree.”
• There is no hint that the first woman created
by God is a creature of lesser worth than the
first male.
• The Quran deals with the pair with perfect
equity. Both are equally guilty of sinning;
both are equally punished by God with
expulsion from the Garden; and both are
equally forgiven when they repent. 
 The Spiritual Aspect (cont.)
Religious obligations and rewards:

• In terms of religious obligations, such as the Daily Prayers,

Fasting, Zakat, and Pilgrimage, woman is no different from man

“If any do deeds of righteousness, be they male or female, and

have faith, they will enter paradise and not the least injustice will
be done to them.” (Quran 4:124)

Lo! Men who surrender unto Allah, and women who surrender,
and men who believe and women who believe, and men who obey
and women who obey, and men who speak the truth and women
who speak the truth …and men who are humble and women who
are humble, and men who give alms and women who give alms,
and men who fast and women who fast, and men who guard their
modesty and women who guard (their modesty), and men who
remember Allah and women who remember-Allah hath prepared
for them forgiveness and a vast reward. (33:35).

• In some cases, woman has certain advantages over man

 The Social Aspect
As a child and an adolescent
• Despite the social acceptance of female infanticide
among some Arabian tribes, the Quran forbade this
custom, and considered it a crime like any other murder.
"And when the female (infant) buried alive - is
questioned, for what crime she was killed." (Qur'an
81:8-9).
• Criticizing the attitudes of such parents who reject their
female children, the Qur'an states:
When news is brought to one of them, of (the Birth of) a
female (child), his face darkens and he is filled with
inward grief! With shame does he hide himself from his
people because of the bad news he has had! Shall he
retain her on (sufferance) and contempt, or bury her in
the dust? Ah! What an evil (choice) they decide on?
(Qur'an 16: 58-59).
• Among the sayings of Prophet Muhammad in this
regard are the following:

Whosoever has a daughter and he does not bury her

alive, does not insult her, and does not favor his son
over her, God will enter him into Paradise. (Ibn
Hanbal, No. 1957).

Whosoever supports two daughters till they mature, he

and I will come in the day of judgment as this (and he
pointed with his two fingers held together).
 Right to education:

• The right of females to seek knowledge is not different from

that of males
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said:
"Seeking knowledge is mandatory for every Muslim".
(AlBayhaqi)
• The Quran repeatedly commands all readers to read, to
recite, to think, to contemplate, as well as to learn from the
signs of Allah.
• In fact, the very first revelation to Prophet Muhammad
(PBUH)) was concerned with knowledge.
• Lectures of the Prophet were attended by audiences of both
men and women
• By the time of the Prophet's death, there were many women
scholars. 
 The Social Aspect (cont.)

As a wife:
The Qur'an clearly indicates that marriage is sharing
between the two halves of the society, and that its
objectives, besides perpetuating human life, are
emotional well-being and spiritual harmony. Its bases are
love and mercy.

“And among His Signs is this, that He created for you

mates from among yourselves that you may dwell in
tranquility with them, and He has put love and mercy
between your (hearts); verily in that are signs for those
who reflect.” (Quran 30:21)
 Rights pertaining to marriage in Islam:

• The female has the right to accept or reject marriage

proposals
• Her consent is a prerequisite to the validity of the
marital contract, according to the Prophet's teachings
• Right to retain her family name
• Right to a separate home
• Full right to her Mahr – marital gift
• Right to be satisfied by her husband
• The husband is responsible for the maintenance,
protection, and overall leadership of the family, within
the framework of consultation and kindness.
• Right to divorce her husband
The Qur'an states:
"...But consort with them in kindness, for if you hate
them it may happen that you hate a thing wherein God
has placed much good." (Qur'an 4: l9).

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said:

“The most perfect believers are the best in conduct and
best of you are those who are best to their wives.”

Prophet (peace be upon him) instructed Muslims

regarding women,

“I commend you to be kind to women.”

• Should marital disputes arise, the Quran
encourages couples to resolve them
privately in a spirit of fairness and probity.

• Under no circumstances does the Quran

encourage, allow, or condone family
violence or physical abuse.
The Social Aspect (cont.)

As a mother:
• Islam considers kindness to parents next to the worship
of God.
Quran says:
"Show gratitude to Me and to your parents: to Me is
(your final) destiny." (Quran 31:14)

• Moreover, the Qur'an has a special recommendation

for the good treatment of mothers
"And we have enjoined upon man (to be good) to his
parents: His mother bears him in weakness upon
weakness..." (Qur'an 31:14) (See also Qur'an 46:15,
29:8).
 The Economic Aspect

• In the 19th century European women did not have the

right to own their own property.

• In Britain, perhaps the first country to give women some

property rights, laws were passed in the 1860's known as
"Married Women Property Act."

• In Germany the wife was denied any control over her

property until 1922 by civil law!
 Islam provides a woman with:

• Right to possess personal property- buy, sell, mortgage, lease

without anyone’s permission being required.
"Whatever men earn, they have a share of that and
whatever women earn, they have a share in that." (Qur'an
4:31)
In Islam the wife’s property and earnings are under her full
control and for her use alone. No matter how rich the wife
might be, she is not obliged to act as a co-provider unless she
herself voluntarily chooses to do so.

• Right to seek Employment

• Right to Inheritance laws

• Financial security
 The Political Aspect

Islam provides a woman with:

• Right to vote

• Participation in political affairs

• Women can be in leadership positions

• Participation in public affairs

- During the Caliphate of Omar Ibn al-Khattab, a woman
argued with him in the mosque, proved her point, and
caused him to declare in the presence of people: “The
woman is right and Omar is wrong.”
Rights of Women in Islam
• Equality of reward for their deeds
• The right and duty to obtain education
• The right to obtain provisions from her father or
brothers until she gets married
• The right to have their own independent property
• The right to provisions from the husband for all her
needs and more.
• The right to work to earn money if they need it or
want it
• The right to keep all her own money
• The right to express their opinion and be heard
• The right to negotiate marriage terms of her choice 
• The right to obtain divorce from her husband
• The right to have custody of their children after
divorce
Even with such distorted image of women in Islam
in the West it is worth mentioning that:
• The history of Muslims is rich with women of great
achievements in all walks of life from as early as the
seventh century (B.C.)
• Out of every 5 Muslim reverts, 4 are women!
• The status which women reached in the west was
achieved through a long struggle and sacrifice on
woman’s part and only when society needed her
contribution and work, during the two world wars, and
due to the escalation of technological change.
• In the case of Islam such compassionate and dignified
status was decreed more than 14 centuries ago, not
because it reflects the environment of the seventh
century, nor under the threat or pressure of women and
their organizations, but rather because of its intrinsic
truthfulness.
Islamic Dress
• Both women and men are expected to dress in a
way, which is modest and dignified.

• Men and women are required to dress and appear

different from each other to maintain their identity
The Prophet cursed the men who appeared like
women and the women who appeared like men

• The traditions of male and female dress found in

some Muslim countries are often expression of local
customs.
• "Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze
and guard their modesty......And say to the believing
women that they should lower their gaze and guard their
modesty; that they should not display their beauty and
ornaments except what ordinarily appear thereof; that
they should draw their veils over their bosoms...."
(24:30,31).
Recommended reading
• Muslim Women in world Religions’ Perspective, by Arefa
Farid.
• Women between Islam and Western Society, by Maulana
Wahiduddin Khan.